Saliba faces up to five months out after surgery blow deepens Arsenal's defensive crisis

William Saliba faces up to five months on the sidelines after the back injury that cut short his World Cup semi-final appearance is set to require surgery, dealing Arsenal a significant blow ahead of their Premier League title defence.

The 25-year-old collapsed in agony in the first half of France’s semi-final exit to Spain, leaving the pitch after just 30 minutes. According to L’Équipe, Saliba will be sidelined for “four to five months” following the procedure, meaning he is likely to miss the first three months of Arsenal’s domestic campaign.

Saliba has since revealed the injury had been troubling him for considerably longer than Tuesday’s collapse suggested. Speaking before the World Cup, he said: “I’ve had some minor niggles for several months. I’ve been gritting my teeth because there was the Champions League and the Premier League. But the coaching staff are handling it very well. The World Cup comes around only once every four years, so you’ve got to grit your teeth. I’m not at 100 percent, but there are plenty of players who aren’t at 100 per cent either. You can’t make excuses.”

In the moment he went down against Spain, Saliba reportedly told defensive partner Dayot Upamecano: “I can’t take it any more, my back is finished.”

The news represents a serious problem for Mikel Arteta, who has built Arsenal’s rise into genuine title contenders on the foundation of one of Europe’s most reliable defences. Saliba and Gabriel Magalhães have been widely regarded as the best centre-back partnership in the Premier League, and losing Saliba for the opening months of the season disrupts a key pillar of that system.

In Saliba’s absence, Arteta is expected to turn to Ben White and Jurrien Timber as cover options at centre-back. Arsenal open their season at home to Coventry before facing trips to Aston Villa and Liverpool and a home fixture against Chelsea within their first ten games — a demanding run that will test the depth of their defensive resources from the outset.